April Reads Ranked & May Books on Deck
$5 Friday
Another month, another chance for you to donate $5 to a good cause. May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so we’re going to be sending our $5 (or more) to The Loveland Foundation. Started in 2018 by , TLF allows Black women, girls, and nonbinary people to access and afford mental health services. In 2025, their Therapy Fund allowed 3,626 people to access mental health care1.
I went ahead and made us our own team fundraiser so we can track our efforts2 (it appears that you can donate to the team without joining it). Please donate and spread the word. If donating isn’t in the cards this month, sharing this with your community on and off social media is still meaningful.
April was one hell of a month. We had The Stacks Meetup Day. Poetry month episodes. The LA Times Festival of books. I even spent a week talking about the minutiae of publishing imprints. We call this range. And craziest of all, I somehow was able to read 10 books this month. Do not ask me how. I do not know. But, where there is a delusional woman at the helm, there is a way.
Below you’ll find a quick recap of The Stacks episodes from April, a list of May books I’m looking forward to, and all the books I finished in April ranked from least to most favorite in mini-podcast form.
The Stacks March Recap
came on the podcast to talk about poetry, writing, and her evolving career. She is the best, and I just can’t imagine listening to this episode and not totally swooning over her.
Yes, my boyfriend, Patrick Radden Keefe, came back on the podcast to talk about his latest book, London Falling. It is as good as I hoped it would be. He is the best. If you do not agree with me, keep that to yourself.
The great Ada Limón blessed The Stacks with her wisdom and love of poetry in an extra special episode that really got me in my feels and inspired me to just read the poems, one at a time.
We ran back Poetry Therapy this year. Five poets — , Cortney Lamar Charleston, , , and —talked about five poems and explained why they work and how they think about them. I love this format so much, and whether you’re a poetry expert or a newbie, you’ll get something out of it.
came on the podcast to talk about “unlikable” women finding love and writing her debut romance novel, Don’t Tell Me How It Ends, in the midst of her divorce.
and I talked about ’s poetry collection Room Swept Home for book club this month. It was such a delight to dig into the poems, both content and style-wise.
May Books On Deck
For some reason, May is the month of the novel. More than half of the books on my May list are fiction. What is going on here? Life is getting too real, even for me I guess. Am I a new woman? Am I delusional? Only time, and my reading life, will tell. To be fair, it also might have to do with the fact that I am neck deep in nonfiction right now in anticipation of the 2026 Nonfiction Reading Guide out later this month.
As a reminder, the list below features the books I am theeeee most excited about for the month ahead. There are some bigger, buzzier books on my radar, but this is my list. It is authentic to me. If you want to know all the books on my radar for May, including ones I may not get to right away but am curious about, check out my #teampreorder list on bookshop.org. It is a running list of forthcoming titles that have sparked my interest. The list below is highly culled and curated to my personal tastes.
The books here are listed in order of pub date, and anything I’ve read (or at least started) appears in bold.
Dekonstructing the Kardashians: A New Media Manifesto by MJ Corey (May 5)
MJ Corey took us into the theory behind the Kardashians on social media and now she is doing it in book form. This one is very interesting and situates the famous family in the context of the history of media and celebrity.The Family Man: Blood and Betrayal in the House of Murdaugh by James Lasdun (May 5)
A few years back, I listened to the Murdaugh Murders podcast, and I barely remember anything except something to do with a boat crash and maybe, like, more murders? So now I want to read this book because who knew there was a book on this whole thing. I am sorry, but I do sometimes like true crime. Please do not hate me.The Hill by Harriet Clark (May 5)
When I first saw this book last fall, it intrigued me, and while I haven’t heard much about it, the premise keeps calling to me. Here is how it is being pitched: “After her mother is sentenced to life in a hilltop prison, Suzanna vows to return to the hill forever. An unexpectedly funny and deeply moving novel about the many ways we punish and return to each other.” I dunno, it kinda sounds like it could be good?Honey by Imani Thompson (May 5)
A Black PhD student in the UK is fed up with the terrible men in her orbit, so naturally, she starts to kill them. The summer of revenge is upon us, ladies.Death of the Soccer God by Dimitry Elias Legér (May 12)
The World Cup is on the horizon, so I feel like I need to read a soccer book, and I have never read a soccer novel, so might as well try this new one. It is about a soccer star in the lead-up to the 1950 World Cup, and his death.Nerve Damage by Annakeara Stinson (May 12)
Another lady revenge novel, this one is about a woman who was stalked by her ex and then becomes obsessed with him when he, maybe, resurfaces?Canon by Paige Lewis (May 19)
I know nothing but that this book is being compared to some of my faves, Martyr! and Chain Gang All-Stars, and that is enough for me. I really do not want to read the marketing copy, so I am just going to go into it blind and hope it works out for me.On Witness and Respair: Essays by Jesmyn Ward (May 19)
A collection of previously released essays from one of our greats. I normally wouldn’t care much about previously released essays, but I do plan to listen to these on audio and just enjoy the ride (and voice).The Overseer Class: A Manifesto by Steven Thrasher (May 19)
I am very curious about Dr. Thrasher’s follow up to The Viral Underclass. This one is focused on the ways that people who are from historically marginalized groups are selected to hold positions of power. What is the deal they must strike between their people and their proximity to power?America, USA: How Race Shadows the Nation's Anniversaries by Eddie S. Glaude Jr. (May 26)
I was not that excited about this book, but then at Bookchella, said this is that book. So like, I am going to take that seriously and give it a try.No God But Us by Bobuq Sayed (May 26)
Another novel I know very little about3. What I do know is that it has a banging cover and it is about two gay Afghan ex-pats who come together in Istanbul. The editor, , is behind one of my favorite Substacks, , and that is also reason enough to try it out.
Tell me the books you’re geeking out over for May. What should be on my list that isn’t? What is on my list that you’re also looking forward to?
April Reads Ranked
Can I be honest? I hate writing this little blurb before I actually rank the books. It just feels so forced and influencery. I’m just gonna tell you that I read 10 books this month, and then if you want to know anything else about these 10 books, you can listen to me rank them in 15 minutes or less. Let’s get on with it.
